The Benedictine Library uses the Dewey Decimal classification system to keep our materials in order. In the Sciences the main Dewey Decimal classes are...
Since the 500s and 600s both contain science, it can be confusing. It may be helpful to remember that...
Perhaps the examples below will help you see the difference.
523 Stars and Planets
551 Weather
567 Dinosaurs
582 Plants
595 Insects
595.44 Spiders
597.3 Sharks
598 Birds
599.8 Monkeys
629 Airplanes
629.28 Cars
629.4 Space Flight
636 Domestic Animals
641.5 Cookbooks
Some topics may be found in both the 500 and 600 numbers. For example wild horses are 599.665 and horses for riding are 636.1.
The Cutter Number
The second line of the call number is called the Cutter Number, and it indicates the author of a book. Think of it as a code number for the author's last name.
The Cutter Number is taken from a table matching names to a set of numbers.
|
Author = Cotkin |
Cutter Number = C826 |
In the case where there is no author, the title of the book is used.
If the author has several works in a subject area, you will see a work mark at the end of the Cutter Number. The work mark is usually the first letter or letters of the first distinctive word in the title.
|
Title = Butterflies |
C826b |
Learn more about Cutter Numbers.
Other Numbers
You may find some additional information after the Cutter Number line.
Some examples include:
613
Sa33c
1994
1994 is the year of the edition
613
Sa33c
1951a
cop.2
cop.2 indicates that this is the library's second copy of the book
Why are some call numbers are longer than others?
The reason is that, the more numbers you add, the more specific the topic gets.
If you were doing a report on dogs, and you are browsing the library shelves for materials you would first look in the 600s, Applied Science. But there are hundreds of books in 600, so you need to narrow your search. You can add a 3, making 630, to get to Agriculture, but there are still too many books there to look through. Add a 6, making 636, to get to Domesticated Animals (animals that are tamed, not wild). But you need to narrow your search even further.
All Call Numbers have three numbers to the left of the decimal point, so to narrow your search further you need to add a number to the right of the decimal. Add a 7 to get 636.7 which is the topic number for dogs.
You could quit there since your report is on dogs, but you could also get even more specific. Add a 5, making 636.75 to get Sporting Dogs, Hounds and Terriers. If you wanted to find dachshunds, you would add a 3 to make your number 636.753 and that is the number for dachshunds.
Don't worry about memorizing all these specific numbers, use the library's online catalog to find the call number numbers you need and then look for the books on the shelf.
